“What? Are you crazy? You are making a very serious mistake. I oversee the entire area operations. I can go anywhere I damn well please,” Raymond said, starting to get even more frustrated.
“Just put your hands behind your back.”
“You are going to…”
“Now. I don’t want to have to tell you again. First your right hand then your left,” the guard interrupted.
Eller decided that this was not the time or place to argue. He would take care of this, and whoever gave such an order, later. If it was General Devin himself, it would the end of his career, regardless of his importance to the base.
Devin was not going to have him restricted or treated like a trespasser. This certainly wasn’t part of the bombing or gunnery range. The guard placed the handcuffs around his wrists and tightened them.
“Now sit down and cross your legs.”
Eller stooped down and tried to sit down but it was impossible without falling the last foot on his rear. It was just one more nail in the coffin of whoever issued these orders. He waited in the hot sun for what seemed like an hour, but was only twenty minutes in reality.
A white Cherokee came roaring up the hill and skidded to a stop causing a wave of dust to roll over him. He closed his eyes and ducked his head as it encircled him. Hammer, hammer, another nail, he told himself. He looked up and saw someone in a fatigues walking toward him. He walked up to Raymond and squatted down.
“Mr. Eller. What are you doing up here?”
“That is my business and if you and your people know what’s good for you, you will release me immediately and explain just what the hell is going on,” he said with his voice intensifying.
“I’m sorry. Maybe you didn’t hear the question. What are you doing up here?” he asked again.
Raymond could see his own dusty reflection in the mirrored sunglasses he wore.
“Just looking around. What’s the big deal? I saw the road leading up here and thought it would be a good place to look out over the area,” he said.
It was going to be useless to argue with these people. He would take care of this when he got back to the main base.
“This is one of those times when curiosity gets the better of the cat,” the guard said.
“What the hell does that mean?” Eller demanded.
“It means, you should have stayed away from here.”
The two men picked him up by his elbows and sat him in the Cherokee and placed the shoulder harness around him.
“Look. I really don’t get it. Don’t you realize the kind of trouble this is going to cause? I am here as a direct representative of the President of the United States. All of this is going to come down on you like a ton of bricks when I make my report,” Eller said, trying to talk some sense into the driver.
He didn’t bother to reply but just drove. Raymond quickly realized they were not headed back to either the main base or S-4. They were headed south, away from the facilities.
“Where are you taking me?” he asked, but again he got no answer.
Fifteen minutes later they approached an enclosure that was surrounded on all sides by rows and rows of razor wire. When the Cherokee approached, a guard inside the booth pressed a button and a gate opened allowing the Jeep to drive in.
Once inside, a door in a large sand colored structure opened and the Jeep entered. He was taken out of the Jeep and escorted down two sets of stairs, to the basement level. He entered a room that had six cells and the guard opened one and shoved him inside.
“What the hell do you people think you are doing? Damn it, I demand to see General Devin,” he yelled but the door slammed shut.
He stood facing the door yelling at the guard but all the guard said was, “If you want the handcuffs removed, shut your face and turn around. Back up to the door and put your hands through the slot.”
Eller was almost out of control with anger over the way he was being treated. The career of these people ended here, today, he thought. The guard removed the handcuffs and closed the opening. He watched as the guard placed the cuffs back on his belt and walked out of the room.
“Don’t you walk out on me. You come back here and get General Devin,” he screamed.
The only reply was his echo.
“Control, 412 reporting. Package secure. We are 10–15.”
“Roger 412. You are released to 10–15.”
412 was the central security control point where interlopers who breached security were kept until they were turned over to the Lincoln County Sheriff’s department. The 10–15 designation meant that they were returning to their normal station.
“Control, report conditions to Thor.”
“412, conditions relayed. 10-4.”
“412, 10–15, 10-4.”
The General sat in his office, going over exactly what he was going to say. Making sure that he had everything possible covered. When he was sure, he picked up the phone and dialed. A few seconds later he was connected with the President.
“General Devin. I was told this was important. I was in a meeting. What’s on your mind?”
“Sir, I am sorry to report that Mr. Eller is missing. We have done a base wide search. We found his vehicle but we have not found any sign of him. All routine operations have been suspended and we are using every available resource to find him.”
“Missing? Good Lord. How could this happen?”
“Well sir, it isn’t the first time. On his last visit he got lost in the desert and had to spend the night sleeping in his vehicle. Just before he left, he wandered very near one of our bombing ranges. We tried to get him to use one of our people as a guide but he refused to allow a driver or guide to accompany him. This is rugged terrain and anything might have happened. You saw how unforgiving it was when you visited the facility” the general said with a worried tone.
“How long has he been missing?”
“Almost forty-eight hours. I didn’t want to alarm you until a reasonable time went by. Also, I didn’t want to potentially embarrass him.”
“Embarrass him? Meaning what?”
“Well, in case he was just lost or…”
“Or what?”
“Well, sir. I don’t want to cause any embarrassment or potential problems for Mr. Eller. I sure he has enough on his plate as it is,” General Devin said, with a hint in his voice that indicated he had more to say.
“I don’t give a rat’s ass about ill will. What are you referring to?”
“He is very friendly with one of the lady scientists here. A Doctor Lynn Yurris. They have spent a considerable amount of time together. I just thought it would be best to use some discretion,” the general said trying to sound sincere.
“Yes, he mentioned Dr. Yurris. She is the one that figured out the propulsion mystery isn’t she?”
“She was one of the ones involved. It was a culmination of the whole team that is actually responsible, not just one person,” the general said.
“I see. Have you talked to her?”
“Yes sir. She says she hasn’t seen him since his arrival.”
“Is that true?”
“I don’t know for sure. I know Mr. Eller went out to S-4 and security has him going to Bay–1 where she works, but I don’t know for sure if he actually saw her,” the general replied.
“I doubt she is a factor. Let’s consider the other possibilities. Tell me your exact plans,” the President said.
“We intend to continue to use everything at our disposal to locate Mr. Eller. We are locked down at all of our ingress and egress points. We have our Blackhawks in the air and the NTS Dragons one and two smaller choppers searching as well. We have initiated adjustment 23 and 23A, which is our security patrols and search patterns. All Sierra one and Sierra two sensors are set for full alert. If he is out in the desert we will locate him, if he is alive. We have full teams on B-1 and P-1 searching as well,” The general told him.